Violent protests against the new defense recruitment scheme continue across India, resulting in chaos and damage to properties.
On Thursday, armed forces aspirants staged an angry protest in portions of Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, and Haryana, which continued on Friday.
Police in northern India fired rounds into the air to disperse stone-throwing protesters, while authorities in at least one region turned off mobile internet to avoid further unrest.
The government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced this week an overhaul of recruiting for India's 1.38 million-strong armed forces to lower the average age of members and lower pension costs, per Hindustan Times.
However, potential recruits, military veterans, opposition leaders, and even some members of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) have expressed reservations about the new process.
Angry Protests Spread Out Across the Country
In northern Haryana state's Palwal district, some 50 kilometers (31 miles) south of the capital New Delhi, crowds hurled stones at a government official's house, and police protecting the building fired shots to keep the mob at bay, according to video footage from Reuter's partner ANI.
One local police official confirmed they have "fired a few shots to control the crowd." The law enforcer declined to be named.
There was no immediate information on the number of casualties.
According to Haryana's information department, mobile internet has been temporarily stopped in Palwal district for the next 24 hours.
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Protesters in eastern India's Bihar state set fire to a BJP office in Nawada city, destroyed railway equipment, and blocked roadways, police authorities claimed, as demonstrations grew across the country, according to a CNN report.
Local authorities claimed protesters also assaulted railway property across Bihar, setting ablaze coaches in at least two locations, damaging train tracks, and vandalizing a station.
The demonstrations come just hours after the defense ministry issued a one-time waiver for recruits aged 21 to 23. The opposition has made the Agnipath recruitment scheme a target for the government.
No Respect for Army
The new Agnipath recruitment method, which means "path of fire" in Hindi, will bring in men and women ages 17 and a half to 21 for a four-year stint as non-officers, with barely a quarter remaining for longer, per ABC.
"No rank, no pension, no direct recruitment for 2 years, no stable future after four years, no respect shown by the government for the army," tweeted Congress leader Rahul Gandhi in response to the proposal.
Union Agriculture Minister and BJP leader Narendra Singh Tomar accused various political parties of misleading the country's young in demonstrations against the new Agnipath scheme. He went on to say that the new strategy will help India's human resources become more skilled.
"Where will we go after working for only four years?" asked one young man, surrounded by fellow protesters in Bihar's Jehanabad district,
Soldiers were once recruited independently by the army, navy, and air force and often served for up to 17 years at the lowest ranks.
Varun Gandhi, a BJP MP from Uttar Pradesh, wrote to India's defense minister Rajnath Singh on Thursday, alleging that after four years of service, 75 % recruited under the scheme will be unemployed.
According to a copy of the letter Gandhi released on social media, "every year, this number will grow."
